-
The quintessential venues that led to the creation of northern soul
While flopping in their Stateside charts, many old soul hits would enjoy a resurrection across the Atlantic amid the UK explosion of northern soul.
Across the 1970s, a wave of dedicated crate diggers and mod-leaning soul fans began congregating at various old ballrooms and basement clubs dotted across England’s north and Midlands areas for electric all-nighter sets soundtracked by heavy beat soul R&B away from the Motown formula.
Such parties became a way of life, a fervently working-class movement dotted across the former industrial heartlands, offering respite from the era’s social ennui and economic downturn, found amid the high-energy atmosphere charged on such soulie nights. Powered by plenty of speed, both dancer and DJ would duel in a good-natured one-upmanship, whoever was behind the decks flexing with their expert collection of VeeJay, Chess, or Shout Records singles, while the moves on the dancefloor could reach acrobatic levels of peacocking showboating.
Eventually, the high-octane influx of pumped US soul records would be dubbed northern soul by London’s Soul City owner and Blues & Soul columnist Dave Godin; it would catch on. For the rest of the decade, England’s north would host various essential nightspots, all offering their own unique yet just as essential pillars of northern soul’s heyday.
With reunion events still in operation and modern DJs honouring the original era’s tenure, we take a look at the clubs and venues that form a quintessential chapter of northern soul’s glorious story.
